CHAPTER 04

The white envelope she received last night was still a brain teaser for everyone, especially for Catalina who still thinking what was the reason for this reward and who's the person behind this bribe—yes, she didn't believe it was a tip from a customer because the money she received is a big amount and it's not for a tip.

" Maybe he's a billionaire and the money he gave to you is not a big deal because, for him, it's just a coin, " said Mariah who was also thinking about the trouble she caused last night because the consequences was far from what she was expecting. " If I were you, I will spend the money right away. Didn't you say that you owe a lot of debt to pay? Well, the Lord has already answered your prayer! "

" No, I'm not going to spend the money. I have a feeling that this is just a bribe, not a tip. " Catalina put the envelope inside a box because she really had no plan to spend it.  " I don't trust the person who gave this to me. What if he stole it and then he just passed it on to me to fabricate the evidence—they framed me! "

Mariah scratched her head. " Wow, didn't know that you have a wild imagination. "

" Mariah—"

" I know, I know. Will you please calm down? " Mariah stood up to stretch her arms. " It's your loss if you just planning to keep the money forever. What if someone steals it from you? What will you do? "

" I don't mind if someone steal it. I don't wanna end up in prison facing the consequence of using this money. My conscience is clear. " She close the box after she put the envelope inside and placed it under her bed before she stood up. " Also, I need to talk to Janice because I really wanted to know what the customer looked like so I can talk to him in case I recognized him. I'm dying to know what is the real reason behind his bribe. "

Mariah took a deep breath and let Catalina do whatever she wanted to happen. She still struggles to figure out how this young woman's brain works. She couldn't predict what would come out of her mouth because her facial expression sometimes didn't match what she had to say. Catalina is an unpredictable woman she met. 

However, Catalina left the dorm and went to the establishment across the street. She's just going to cross the other side of the road to go to the nightclub where she was working. It was already 10 am but some of her companions were still asleep because 5 am was the end of their working hours. They're all tired including her but because of the money she received, her mind didn't let her sleep. She's dying to know who's the person behind this. 

" Good morning, Ma'am, " the janitor greeted her with a smile when she get inside. He was busy cleaning and arranging the chairs around the room. 

" Morning. Uhm, I'll just ask if Janice was already awake? " she asked then helped the janitor put the debris he was carrying into the trashcan. 

" Thank you, Miss Maam, but you don't need to help me, your clothes might get dirty. " He pointed to the door where Janice was. " She was still inside and looked like she was still asleep because I hadn't seen her coming out from her room. "

" I see, thank you, " she said, then walked towards the door and was about to knock when she heard a moan from the inside. She lowered her hand and turned around to get away from the room. 

" Oh, what's the matter? No one answered? " asked the janitor.

" I think she's busy right now. I'll be back later, just tell her that I wanted to talk to her. Thank you, " and then she walked out of the establishment. She sighed. " As far as I can remember, she was still having sex with someone last night yet she never get tired?  Unbelievable. "

She was about to cross the other side of the road when she spot a familiar car, parked in front of their dorm. 

" Sh*t, no way, " she cussed as soon as she saw an old man get off the car. There's no doubt, she already knew that person based on the stance and his cane. 

Before she got caught, Catalina did not hesitate to leave to find a place where she can hide from her creditor. Out of all the people she conceal, that old man didn't know how to give up. He will do everything to find her and if it's necessary, he will visit every corner of the world just to take the money back she borrowed. The interest rates has been increasing since the day she owes the money from them and that's the main reason why she can no longer pay. 

***

Rostam fired in rapid succession at the human shooting range in front of him with a pistol in his hand. He almost filled it with every bullet and no space for the next shot. 

" Boss, there's someone who wants to talk to you, " said Lorenzo, holding his phone behind him.

" Is that more important than this? " he asked before pulling the trigger once more. 

Lorenzo looked at the phone, scratching his head before he replied. " I think so. If you didn't talk to her, there's a chance she will make a fuss again or even worse. "

He stopped as soon as he realized what will possibly happen if he continues to ignore this person. He removed his ear protector before he took his phone to answer her calls. 

" What do you want this time? " he casually asked.

" Where the hell are you?! Your people here don't want to let me in! The hell, don't tell me you've got me blacklisted? " she asked, irritably. They're talking through the phone, not in person but Rostam could feel the fire coming out of her mouth into his ear.

" Seriously, what do you really want? " He walked out of the shooting range. 

" Give me money! " she answers quickly, " Right here, right now! If you didn't have cash, then you can send it to my bank account. "

He chuckled darkly. " And what if I don't? "

" Then see you in hell, " she said, sighing. " Gosh, don't be stubborn! I'm your twin sister, remember? You should help me, not doing this kind of sh*t. Just send me the money and I'm not bothering you anymore. "

" No, I can't. "

" Oh come on, you can kill but you can't afford to give me money? Are you f*cking serious right now? "

He pinched the bridge of his nose, calming himself before ended the call. He went to his office and took out money to give it to his twin sister outside the gate. He put it in a white envelope before handing it to Lorenzo.

" If she really values her life, tell her that this is the last she will come back here or else, I'll see her in hell, " he said but he knew that no matter what threats to his twin sister, she would still come back here to mess with him and ask for money. She will do everything to get what she wants but when things don't go as planned, she will create problems that can affect his organization. 

Lombardi Family, willing to despise everyone just to get what they desire. 

***

" Oh God, you're finally here! Where have you been? " Janice greeted when she finally saw Catalina standing in front of her dorm when she was about to leave. 

" Running away from death, " she said and went inside the kitchen to drink water. She just had returned from different places where she was hiding for almost two hours. " I'm sorry if I suddenly disappeared without any words. You know, I just saw one of my creditors standing right in front of our dorm earlier, so I—"

" Yeah, we already know but don't worry, we didn't say anything to him, " Mariah said while eating her lunch on the table. " Now I know why you've been hiding from your creditors because despite his old age, he still intimidating as hell. He looks like a syndicate member. "

" I guess. " She pulls out the chair to sit beside her and look at the other girls, minding their own business. " I'm sorry for the inconvenience. I had no idea why he found me here. I'm sorry if they did something bad to you guys. "

" Catalina, he didn't do anything. He just warned us about your debt and charge you. Talking sh*t about you, bla bla bla. We just pretend we're listening to him but we're actually not."

She just smiled, feeling ashamed because of what she did earlier. Instead of facing her own problems, someone does it for her sake. 

" Don't you worry, we didn't say that you're staying here. I said that you're just an acquaintance who used to stay here, " Janice added, " but unfortunately, he didn't believe what I said. He said he will come back here anytime so yeah, brace yourself. "

She sighed. " As expected. "

" You know what, just give the money you received last night, " Janice suggested, " so he wouldn't bother you anymore. "

" About that, I have no plans to use it. I will return that money to the one who gave it to me, " she declared, " I don't trust that person, Janice. It's clearly he's up to something from me. I feel like it's just a trap and he's waiting for me to use it for his own interests, so no, I will not use it. "

" Then what is your plan? " asked Mariah, " You can't just hide from your creditors every time they're looking for you, Catalina. Face them, so you can properly discuss your debt. "

" I really don't know how can I face them, " she pulls her hair out of frustration. " Dang, this is harder than I thought. I think I need an extra job to get an extra income so I can easily pay all of my debt. "

" You're stressing yourself out. You already have the money that can solve your problem, Catalina. Relax, you're just overthinking. You only have one problem, not two, " Janice sighed, " The VIP customer who gave you the huge tip last night is obviously a billionaire, and believe it or not, it really happened here occasionally. So don't create another problem because of the money, consider it as a blessing. "

She didn't answer but there was a part of her mind that she want to follow what they said—to use the money she received last night, but she will keep her words no matter what. As long as she didn't know who's the person and what's the reason behind this, she won't do anything with that money. 

When the night has come, another venture she'll need to face at the nightclub. It's too early yet many customers are already inside, enjoying their night.

" Sis, I have a suggestion for your hairstyle tonight—a pigtail braids, " Mariah suggested, brushing her red long hair. " Our theme for tonight is sportswear and you're wearing tennis attire and it suits you perfectly. You just need to braid your hair to look more attractive. "

" Well, thanks? "

" I'm serious! It looks plain if you didn't do anything with your beautiful shiny red hair, " she parted Catalina's hair. " Your collarbone is showing so don't cover it with your hair. Did you know that collarbone is one of the sexiest parts of the woman's body? That's why you needed to show it to caught everyone's attention. "

" Oh, I see. Thanks for the trivia, " she jokingly said. Mariah pouted her lips but she still does her hair to style it with braid pigtails. 

Catalina greeted by the noise from the crowd as she left the room where they start doing their job. There are few empty tables but it's gradually filled with customers who were ready to party until the morning.

" Hey, can you please bring this to table number four? " The bartender gave her two buckets of ice. She nodded and immediately delivered the requested ice buckets to the aforementioned table. 

" Lap dance! Lap dance! " Catalina's attention was caught by the group of men who were starting to become wild like a beast because the alcohol is already poisoning their brains. Women who were assigned at their table were already doing their job to entertain the customers. 

She gulped and immediately turned her gaze to the other side of the table. She wanted to speak and create a scene again but she restrained herself. This is their job and this is the world she will start living that's why she needs to train herself to see this kind of scenarios every night. She need to swallow her pride and be brave enough because this is her reality. She has no money, she's homeless, and no parents and friends, so even if what she sees around is disgusting, she just needs to hold back, mind her own business, and continue doing her job.

She shook her head and returned her attention to the customers. As the night went deeper, the number of people inside were still increasing. She's on the second floor and she could feel the beat of the music at his feet as well as the crowd dancing on the dance floor. 

" Catalina! " She stopped at the end of the stairs when she heard Janice's voice somewhere. Her eyes roamed around the second floor and when she finally saw her at the end of the hallway, she went back to the second floor where Janice is. 

' Faster! You're too slow! " She then pulled her arm closer to her. " Don't you want to see the person who gave you money last night? He's here! Look! "

Her eyes widened and followed Janice's index finger pointed at the crowd but she couldn't determine who she was pointing to. 

" Janice, there are so many people here! Tell me where exactly his position so I can easily spot him! "

" He was there near the exit door! " Janice answered, still pointing at the crowd. " He's wearing a black suit, holding a cigarette with his right hand! "

Catalina narrowed her eyes, hoping to find that person, and there, she spotted someone wearing a black suit while smoking a cigarette near the exit door, but she was having a hard time seeing his face clearly because of the led lights. He's talking to someone but all of sudden they walked out of the exit door. 

" Oh my gosh, they're leaving! Chase them so you can thank—" Janice couldn't finish her words when she realized that Catalina was already disappeared next to her. " Wow, okay. Attagirl! "

However, Catalina finally got out of the building and saw them walking into the parking lot so she quickly ran to reach them.

" Excuse me! Hold on a sec—" before she could even get their attention, suddenly a car stopped right in front of her which cause her to move backwards.The driver's seat opened and a man came down to open the door at the back seat of the car. 

She cussed as soon as she saw the old man getting off the car with his walking cane and a big creepy smile on his face when their eyes met. Suddenly, she forgets how to breathe. Her efforts earlier were useless because she already got caught. 

" Long time no see, Catalina. How are you? " he asked, still grinning at her. 

She couldn't answer right away because her mind went blank. She couldn't move because of fear that his cane would hit her again.

" As expected, you will end up here, " he mocked, looking directly at her soul. " You're finally a hooker. Tell me, what's your price? "

She clenched her fist and stopped herself from responding to the old man. There's a bodyguard beside him holding a gun and if she let her emotions out, there's a chance she couldn't survive this night. 

" I will pay my debt, " she said, " Promise, I'll pay you. Once I get my wages this week, I'll give them to you fully. "

He laughed sarcastically. " Young lady, don't make me laugh with that bullsh*t excuses. I've heard that many times but I haven't received anything from you. You're just fleeing and hiding."

" N-no, I'm not! I'm not hiding from you! I'm just looking for a job in other places so I can pay you right away. " She bites her lower lip, taking a deep breath to calm herself down. " Yes, you're right. this is my job. This is where I earn money and I'm going to pay you just please... please, give me one last chance. "

" You don't need one last chance, young lady. I've given you a lot of time to pay all your debt but you keep running away. " He lifted his walking cane to pierce it on Catalina's forehead. " I've told you this before but let me repeat it, so you can think about it for the nth time. You can pay half of your debt, just be my fille de joie. "

" No, I'm not doing that, " she declined and jogged his walking cane. " How many times do I need to repeat that I will return the money I borrowed? I'm not running away. "

He laughed again as if there was something funny about what she said. " Catalina De La Vega, don't be proud of yourself. You're nothing, but a prostitute. Do you think you can pay me right away because of the work you're proud of? Ridiculous. "

She felt small and insignificant after she heard that words.

" You're talking like you already have huge money to pay me. Why? Do you have it already? Then give it to me! " For the second time, he pierce his walking cane towards her and was about to hit her when she suddenly felt a hand holding her back to support when she tried to dodge it. 

" Is there anything I can help you with? " she heard a man's voice, deep and alluring. She turned around but she suddenly froze when she saw a familiar person behind her. The man she accidentally met recently, Rostam Lombardi. 

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